TAKE ACTION

Our health, our safety, our justice, our planet – The responsibility is ours. How you can take action.

TAKE COMMUNITY ACTION.

Take the Lead. As an educator, writer, small business owner, or impassioned citizen, make it your priority to empower & educate those around you. Spread awareness, “green” your business, and promote community efforts to go carbon-free.

Attend City Hall Meetings. Voice your thoughts & create ways to engage the community. The city of Davis, CA, for example, formed a “Climate Action Team,” uniting individuals, groups, businesses, and organizations to work towards lowered greenhouse gas emissions.

Fight for Social Justice. We have to help people to help the planet. Areas that promote democracy, social freedoms, women’s rights, racial and gender equality, & social stability tend to be more environmentally sustainable. We must strengthen democracy to achieve climate stabilization.

Self-Sufficient Communities. Promote local businesses, local food, & elimination of toxic industries in your community. Small businesses circulate wealth within communities, while local food production promotes food justice, better public health, and cleaner practices.

If you own a business… Take steps to reduce the environmental impact of your business or organization, & encourage community members to follow.

Think: Where does your food come from? How is it made? Who does it impact?

Consume Less. The clothes, products, and array of things we buy all have unseen human, political, and environmental costs. From resource extraction, to human labor, industrial production, and transportation, the exchange of goods in a globalized economy contributes significantly to social inequality, increased emissions, & environmental wreckage. However, there are companies embracing circular business models & fair labor practices.

Keep a reusable container in your car. No need for plastic bags or styrofoam when you eat out and have leftovers.

Reusable cutlery and straws. Bring cutlery from your kitchen to work or school. Keep them in your car. Buy reusable straws, or refuse straws altogether. Straws cannot be recycled, and are the #1 source of plastic pollution in our oceans.

Seek Credible Sources of Information. Through covering certain issues over others, the media determines public awareness, & what topics we care about.

THE ROLE OF THE MEDIA. U.S. media is dominated by a small handful of corporate media institutions. These corporate media outlets – liberal, conservative, or somewhere in between – are all required by shareholders to maximize profit. This is deeper than bias – it determines which issues are covered, & controls public awareness. Seek independent media sources, that rely on funding from public tax dollars, or donations from viewers.

Think: Who wrote this, why did they write it, & where do they receive funding from? Who benefits from this message, and who loses?

Compost. As leftover food items decay in landfills, they produce methane, a greenhouse gas that is 120 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. Get started here.

Write to Your Senators and Representatives. Our leaders will not act on our demands unless we make our voices heard.